Technology has been described as ‘a great leveller’, changing the rules of the game to close the gap between larger and smaller players and allow low cost entry to the big markets.  Over 60 technology experts and hospitality leaders will head the EURHOTEC 2000 conference programme, structured to reflect the range of tech issues at stake, and focus on the technology needs of small and medium-sized establishments.
An anticipated 1,500 participants will gather ideas and find ways of increasing operational efficiency by selecting their own, custom-made educational programme from a total of more than 25 high-powered business sessions.

Organised by the International Hotel & Restaurant Association (IH&RA), EURHOTEC 2000 will be held at Lausanne’s Beaulieu Congress and Exhibition Centre.  Attendees will include presidents, owners, general managers, directors of finance, operations, and information services, and managers of front office and reservations, sales and marketing, food & beverage, IT, telecoms and purchasing.

Topics on the EURHOTEC agenda include data warehousing and mining, e-commerce, Internet innovations, the European single currency, systems architecture, product distribution, credit card authorising systems, in-room technology, customer relationship management, roll-out strategies, enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, wireless technology, selection of point-of-sale, property management and telecom systems, and use of Intranets in operations.

A second educational track will feature a series of vendor presentations by EURHOTEC corporate sponsors designed to prime delegates on their latest products and services.  Speakers will also be showcasing products at the EURHOTEC exhibition, expected to attract more than 100 major tech-based suppliers to the hospitality industry.

Confirmed exhibitors include AremisSoft Corporation, Bartech EMEA, Centre International de Glion, Citadel, Comtelco AG, Cyntergy, GEAC Hotel Systems, Guestlink, Hogatex, HospitalityNet, Hotel Concepts, Hotel Information Systems, IBM, Siemens Building Technologies, Trust, VingCard Group, WorldRes.com, Maginet, Netgame, Multitech, TIMS Corporation, and Video Jock.

EURHOTEC aims to highlight technology’s potential as a competitive weapon that can boost revenue, reduce costs, enhance guest loyalty and add value for shareholders.  Since its inception in 1996, it has seen a steady growth in both visitor and exhibitor numbers.  This year’s show, held in Vienna in February, drew 1,100 participants from 54 countries, and provided a showcase for 90 major exhibitors of tech-based products and services.

The International Hotel & Restaurant Association (IH&RA) is a global network representing over 750,000 hospitality operators, associations and suppliers in more than 150 countries.  Its mission is to protect, promote and inform the hospitality industry, which it estimates to comprise over 300,000 hotels and 8 million restaurants world-wide, employ 60 million people and contribute US$950 billion to the global economy.